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Album covers offer a unique window into the history of music. The cardboard slabs were bold, big, and quite often, beautiful. We've seen plenty of arguments about which LP cases are the all-time best, but the debate is largely limited to vinyl available in the U.S. One look at this fascinating site of vintage Asian album covers might inspire a few music fans to reconsider their beliefs. Cool cases proliferated in Singapore and throughout Southeast Asia during the flamboyant '60s and '70s. For proof, check out the trippy Idaly Sisters, the far-out look of Ismail Haron, or the swingin' dudes known as The Quests. You'll also encounter a Beatles tribute, plenty of bad hair, and a few brash statements. So long! Ding dong! The groovy vibes of these classic covers will leave you strummin' a happy tune all day long.

We love found objects. There, we said it. Given our proclivity, this site is a welcome twist on the provenance of items left behind and forgotten. The site's title comes from a lost journal purchased at a knickknack store in Hong Kong. This vintage diary was then carefully scanned page by page to reveal its treasure trove of contents. The twist? Just about everything in the book is written in Chinese characters. The site hopes to harness the power of the Web in order to unlock the mysteries within this long-forgotten book. If your translation skills are sharp and you have a few minutes to contribute, your efforts can help unravel tiny secrets that otherwise would have been lost to the sands of time.

Caftans made the man in 16th- and 17th-century Turkey. Unlike the tight, rigid, European clothes of the time, the Ottomans wore layers of heavy robes that made the wearer seem bigger and more impressive. Fine fabrics were precious commodities, and foreign dignitaries and loyal subjects received gifts of silks. Robes of honor symbolized the political hierarchy of the Ottoman court, and people would suck up to the sultan by literally kissing his hem. Explore the colorful tiles on this Smithsonian exhibit to get close-up looks at the opulent textiles, and then click the "I" for a description of the historic garment. The collection features cloth of gold and silver, brocaded silk, elaborate velvets, geometric motifs, and Russian Orthodox Church vestments. Instead of wearing their hearts on their sleeves, these Turks wore their socioeconomic status right where everyone else could see it.